{
  "id": "dict_000146",
  "term": "Alexander",
  "slug": "alexander",
  "letter": "A",
  "entry_type": "biblical_person",
  "entry_family": "theological_term",
  "depth_profile": "standard",
  "short_definition": "A New Testament personal name borne by more than one man; not a theological term.",
  "simple_one_line": "Alexander is a common New Testament name for several different men.",
  "tooltip_text": "A personal name in the New Testament, including figures in Acts and the Pastoral Epistles.",
  "aliases": [
    "Alexander (Acts)"
  ],
  "scripture_references": [],
  "original_language_terms": [],
  "related_entries": [
    "Acts",
    "1 Timothy",
    "2 Timothy",
    "Rufus",
    "Simon of Cyrene"
  ],
  "see_also": [
    "Alexandrian text",
    "Acts",
    "1 Timothy",
    "2 Timothy"
  ],
  "lede_intro": "Alexander is a New Testament personal name borne by more than one man. The Bible uses it as the name of several individuals in different settings, not as a theological concept.",
  "at_a_glance_definition": "Alexander is a Greek personal name used for multiple New Testament individuals.",
  "at_a_glance_key_points": [
    "A personal name, not a doctrine",
    "At least two, and likely three, New Testament men are called Alexander",
    "Key references include Acts 19:33",
    "1 Timothy 1:20",
    "2 Timothy 4:14"
  ],
  "description_academic_short": "Alexander is the name of more than one New Testament man. Because the name refers to multiple individuals, it functions as a disambiguation entry rather than a theological term.",
  "description_academic_full": "Alexander is a Greek personal name used for multiple New Testament individuals. The most notable are the Alexander in Acts 19:33, the Alexander mentioned in 1 Timothy 1:20, and the Alexander associated with Paul’s opponents in 2 Timothy 4:14. Because the New Testament does not clearly identify all of these figures as the same man, the name is best treated as a disambiguation entry rather than a theological category.",
  "background_biblical_context": "The name appears in narrative and epistolary settings without doctrinal development. Context must determine which Alexander is in view in each passage.",
  "background_historical_context": "Alexander was a common Greek name in the Hellenistic and Roman world, so more than one person in the New Testament could bear it.",
  "background_jewish_ancient_context": "Jews in the diaspora often used Greek names alongside Hebrew names, and Gentiles commonly bore Greek names as well. A figure named Alexander could therefore be Jewish or Gentile depending on the passage.",
  "key_texts_primary": [
    "Acts 19:33",
    "1 Timothy 1:20",
    "2 Timothy 4:14"
  ],
  "key_texts_secondary": [
    "No additional references identified with confidence."
  ],
  "original_language_note": "Greek Alexandros (Ἀλέξανδρος), a common personal name meaning roughly 'defender of men' or 'protector of men.'",
  "theological_significance": "Limited. The entry matters for careful Bible reading and cross-referencing, but it does not name a doctrine.",
  "philosophical_explanation": "This is a simple example of why Bible reference works distinguish names, offices, and doctrines: the same personal name can refer to different people in different contexts.",
  "interpretive_cautions": "Do not assume every New Testament Alexander is the same person. Where Scripture does not explicitly identify a link between references, conclusions should remain tentative.",
  "major_views_note": "Most interpreters treat the name as referring to at least two, and probably three, distinct men. Some connect the references more closely, but the evidence is not decisive.",
  "doctrinal_boundaries": "This entry should not be used to build doctrine. Its value is lexical and historical, not theological.",
  "practical_significance": "Readers should pay close attention to context when tracing biblical people with common names, especially in the New Testament.",
  "meta_description": "Alexander is a New Testament personal name borne by more than one man; this entry clarifies the main references and distinguishes them from one another.",
  "public_url": "/companion-bible-dictionary/alexander/",
  "json_url": "/companion-bible-dictionary/data/dictionary/alexander.json",
  "final_disposition": "PUBLISH_CANONICAL"
}